What Is the Philosophy of Social Science?

This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book provides a definition of philosophy that makes the subject inescapable for the social scientist. It discusses that the unavoidability and importance of philosophical questions are even more significant for the social scientist than for the natural scientist. Problems of functionalism, holism, and individualism are exacerbated by the ever-increasing influence of biological science, and especially Darwin&s;s theory of natural selection, on all the social and behavioral sciences. The book explores the relation between the social sciences and moral philosophy. It shows why the immediate choices that social scientists make in conducting their inquiry commit them to taking sides on the most profound and perennial questions of philosophy. The book also outlines the arguments both for and against the claims that the social sciences have failed to progress and that this failure needs explanation.